As more and more data is being transmitted over networks, there is a great need for higher data transmission speeds between components, including components located on the same circuit board. Copper is a common material used to transmit data, but copper suffers from transmission speed limitations. For example, a copper trace currently provides no more than 25 Gbps over at a short distance at large physical volume and at high power consumption.
To improve performance, optical signaling have been used. More specifically, optical cables on top of a printed circuit board (PCB) have been used to route optical signals between components on the PCB.